A Kenyan woman, Frenda Chelagat, has shared a deeply emotional account of her struggles in Saudi Arabia, revealing that the agency responsible for her travel and employment abroad abandoned her when she needed help the most.
Her story has sparked fresh outrage over the treatment of Kenyan domestic workers in the Gulf region and the accountability of recruitment agencies back home.
According to Chelagat, her problems began shortly after she started working for her employer in Saudi Arabia. What she had expected to be a life-changing opportunity quickly turned into a nightmare marked by overwork, mistreatment, and lack of communication with her family.
Despite repeated attempts to seek assistance from the agency that facilitated her employment, she was met with silence and indifference.
“The agency that took me to Saudi stopped answering my calls the moment I said I was suffering,” she said in a tearful video shared online. “They promised to help if anything went wrong, but when I begged for help, they disappeared. I felt trapped and forgotten.”
Chelagat’s ordeal reflects a growing number of similar cases involving Kenyan migrant workers, particularly women employed as domestic helpers in Middle Eastern countries.
Many complain of poor working conditions, physical and emotional abuse, withheld salaries, and lack of legal protection once they leave Kenya.
Her heartbreaking testimony has reignited calls for the Kenyan government to tighten regulations governing foreign employment agencies. Labour rights advocates argue that some agencies exploit desperate job seekers by charging high fees, falsifying contracts, and failing to provide post-deployment support as required by law.
“This is a serious human rights issue,” said Julius Rutto, a Kenyan activist who shared Chelagat’s story on Facebook. “Recruitment agencies must be held accountable for the welfare of every worker they send abroad. You cannot profit from someone’s pain and then walk away when things go wrong.”
The Ministry of Labour has repeatedly warned unregistered and non-compliant agencies against operating, promising stricter enforcement and protection for Kenyan workers overseas.
However, critics say oversight remains weak, and many victims continue to suffer in silence due to fear of retaliation or lack of access to embassy assistance.
Chelagat’s emotional plea has drawn sympathy from Kenyans online, with many urging the government to intervene and bring her home safely.
Others have called for comprehensive reforms in Kenya’s foreign employment system, including better pre-departure training, psychological support, and stronger bilateral agreements with host countries.
Her story stands as a painful reminder of the risks many Kenyan domestic workers face while seeking greener pastures abroad — and the urgent need for accountability from both the agencies and the government institutions meant to protect them.
By Creatorhub